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Pied-Noir (Pieds-Noirs)

"Pied-Noir" is an alternate name for the Blackfoot tribe. It literally means "black foot" in French, and was a translation of the tribal name Siksika (which also means "black foot.")

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"Pied-Noir" has become a confusing term for many people. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the term Pied-Noir was only used to refer to Blackfoot Native Americans, but in the 1950's, it began to be used to refer to ethnic French Algerians, and to other North Africans of European descent. In French, Pied-Noir is still used interchangeably to refer to either group of people, but in English, modern references to Pieds-Noirs almost always refer to the North African communities (whereas older historical texts are always referring to the Blackfoot Native American tribe.)

Here are links to our webpages about the Pied-Noir tribe and language:
Blackfeet language
Blackfeet
Blackfoot tribe
Blackfeet names
Algonquian language family
Canadian First Nations
Plains Indian tribes

Here are some French websites about the Native American Pied-Noirs:
Les indiens Blackfeet ou Pieds-Noirs
Langue pied-noir
Confédération des Pieds-Noirs

Here are a few websites about the North African Pied-Noirs:
Remembering French Algeria: Pieds-Noirs, Identity, and Exile
The History of the Pied-Noirs
Footprints of Pied-Noirs reach deep into France
Wikipedia: Pieds-Noirs

Here are a few good books about the Pied-Noirs:
Blackfoot Ways of Knowing
Blackfoot Stories of Old
Blackfoot Dictionary

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